A Gift of Time and Space
by MayMargaret
Summary: When the TARDIS receives a cryptic message, Mia and the Doctor must solve it as they face a foe of the Time Lord long forgotten. Can he prevent the Skasis Paradigm from being solved once again?
1. Chapter 1

"Ah! At last, good old London!" The Doctor greeted the city beyond the blue wooden doors like a welcome friend, his grin stretching from ear to ear, while I stood in dull dread at the prospect.

"The quietest location in the galaxy," I remarked sarcastically, not sure whether I intended him to hear it. Whether he did or not, I never found out, his shoulders remained square and poised for adventure. He seemed to enjoy saving this place as though it were a damsel in distress.

I followed him from the TARDIS as I tugged on my coat, my hair battling the winter winds as it flew about like wild fire around my face. The Doctor stood out a couple of feet away, examining each perspective rapidly while keeping his hands firmly in his pockets as his coat tails flapped away. "Well? Where is it?"

The Doctor came to a halt, and settled into a stance facing me directly. He looked far over my head with a distant gaze. "Ah..."

I followed his line of sight, and landed on the huge building behind, silver and polished windows glistening in the low light. I looked back at the Doctor, and then again to the building. He seemed to be watching it.

"Is this it?"

Quiet footsteps approached, and he was standing right beside me. "Yep."

"How do you know?"

His eyes hovered darkly over the towering structure, brown eyes far away. "I've been here before. Well, that very building in fact. Remember Adipose?"

"The weight loss pill thing?"

He nodded, and began rubbing the back of his neck. "This was headquarters. Mrs Foster, died right there." He pointed to a concrete slab just as a blonde business woman walked over it. I allowed my eyes to trail upwards, all the way up to the top of the building. The mere thought was dizzying.

"The spaceships. The tiny creatures floating up in the beams."

"Children, thousands of them."

"I heard they were made from fat," I recalled in disgust, but I also remembered their tiny plodding bodies as they flocked into the streets in the masses. Children.

"Yep, most of them anyway. Some people died. Born from death. They probably didn't suspect a thing," he said, and his voice trailed away. "A friend of mine, she watched it happen."

"What happened to her?"

Suddenly the melancholy expression was wiped clean, and he swiped my hand in his and we pursued the building with enthusiasm and the promise of adventure. "We can't just wonder in," I warned him, but knowing him, he had his ways.

"Yes we can!"

The doors opened, and my hand fell out of his as he reached into his pocket without stopping, while I blindly followed suit. Two security guards approached, but the Doctor was ready with his wallet and practically shoved it in front of the guards faces. "Health inspectors," he asserted with authority, and we ploughed on, he as though he owned the apparently cursed place.

We passed through some 'STAFF ONLY' doors and descended a stair case, the lights becoming dimmer and less artificial. We began to slow to a normal pace, and the Doctor resumed his scanning.

"Let me see that ID," I requested, and he passed it over automatically. While I wasn't sure what I was expecting, I wasn't expecting what I found.

"It's blank."

"Psychic paper," he informed flippantly, and turned a corner. I looked up when I heard the familiar drone of the sonic screwdriver as he held it before him like a gun.

"You really rely on that thing too much, you know-"

"Shhh!"

Eyes flicking between the blue light and the end of the corridor ahead, his face slowly grew into a faint smile, and he began turning while I watched in awe. "There!"

I turned and faced a new door I hadn't even noticed in the side of the long wall, and the Doctor pushed it open with his free hand. We entered a dimly lit room, although I couldn't see a window, a lamp, any light source at all. Opposite us was a second door.

"Come on," his voice said softly, and he placed the silver object back in his inside pocket. A sense of dread washed over me, but I resisted the urge to grab his hand, such a childish motion in fear. As though in slow motion, his large bony hand lay flat on the door, and I wished I could see his expression. If he looked calm, I had to trust that calm. If he looked scared...I hadn't even witnessed it, and I never wished to.

The door refused to open as pressure was put upon it, and increased. I thought about suggesting it was locked, but I noticed the lack of handle. Perhaps it was just jammed.

"Can't the sonic screwdriver do anything?"

The Doctor began feeling his way around the frame and digging his fingers between it and the door.

"The simplest ingenious object in the galaxy does not require a sonic screwdriver. Besides, it doesn't work with wood." I smirked.

"AND Miss Morton I do not rely on it...too...MUCH!" The door flew open with one strong pull, and light filtered in. But this one was a grey light, much like outdoor. But again, I found no windows, no rows of lights.

What I did see was a humongous room, far too big to fit underground beneath an office block. Even one of this size. The only sound was a quiet, gentle thudding. My eyes landed on desks. Rows and rows of them, going as far back as the eye could see, hundreds of workers sat behind them, eyes down. Each mimicking the other, fingers tapping furiously. From this distance, perhaps 20 feet away from the closest row facing us, I could see a green glow on their faces.

"Doctor?" I whispered, my voice trembling. Not one of them so much as peered up. I looked up to see his face, to evaluate the situation, but it was cold. Icey, solid, set, as a cold mask. Something I had never seen. I probably would have preferred anger, or even fear, but not this.

"Doctor? What is it?"

His large brown eyes were low, slow moving and perceptive, as they made their way to his left, and landed on a fixed point. I turned my head to the wall behind, huge and grey and imposing, flawless save for a small square of glass overlooking the work force. A black figure stood, and, while I could see no features on the silhouette, something felt wrong about it. Not quite human. Not even close. Something seemed to be protruding from its back.

"What...is that...thing?" I asked, glancing at the workers for just a second, before snapping my eyes back to the window. It was gone.

"Ah, a familiar face," a pompous, smooth voice droned. "At last, a reunion."


	2. Chapter 2

"Finch," The Doctor observed gravely. The suited man, if you could call him that, smiled graciously with leathery lips. "Im flattered my name is still in your memory. And pray, introduce me to your pretty...pale friend." He extended his hand, with long, clawed fingers a colour no human fingers should be. I stared at it blankly, and raised my eyes to his to assess any possible danger. His light blue orbs glistened, but that wasn't what caught my eye. Appendages protruded from his back, like small wings, but jagged and darkened at the edges. Like they'd been burnt. From then, anything that was remotely human about him was tainted and beyond recognisable.

"Sorry, germaphobic, don't take offence."

His composure faltered somewhat, and stared down at his hand with something like disgust. "I do not blame you." I felt a stab of guilt, surprising and expectant at once.

"Its Mia, by the w-"

Now! Where are my manners," he expressed smoothly, placing his hands together, "Doctor. We have so much to discuss. Come."

Before we could refuse, the man, Finch, turned quick on his heals, and I gained a better view of the grotesque things poking out through slits made in his expensive striped jacket. They seemed to be sewn tightly around them.

"You're doing well," The Doctor whispered as we trailed behind, but I had no doubt Finch heard with bat like senses. His ear twitched ever so slightly while I pinned my eyes to the back of his head. I forgot the Doctor had said anything for a moment. When I realised, I just turned and gave him my most confident smile, as though I were not absolutely terrified of this genteel alien we were following to who knew where.

We halted, and again my eyes landed on a door I never noticed before, only coming into view as Finch pressed it open with little force. We came to a stair case, only visible while the door, ajar, shone light from the corridor. We were plunged into pitch black, and I clung on to the man I trusted, perhaps foolishly, with my life as we climbed.

"Now then," Finch began as he pushed yet another door open, and we came to a plain office, windows blackened with paint and a single lamp in the corner. There was only a desk, 2 chairs, and a laptop atop it in the centre of the room. "Please," he motioned to the chairs, and the Doctor sat, and I followed suite. I suddenly felt like I was in some sort of business meeting as Finch began pacing gracefully on the solid oak flooring.

"Can I get you both something? I know finding your way around this building is awfully exhausting."

The Doctor, uncharacteristically silent, pulled a thoughtful face. "Nah. Mia?"

I shook my head. The Doctor turned back to Finch and grinned. "Cheap round. Good. Now get to the point, we're busy people."

"Aha yes, you are, very much so, Doctor. Daleks, Cybermen, Weeping Angels, the Racnoss, no doubt this very building in fact stirs some memories."

"You've been keeping watch, I see."

Finch let out a quiet chuckle, as though he had been caught out. "I cannot help but follow the adventures of the last Time Lord. But, pray, i'm curious, how are your friends? Are they all well? Rose, how is dear Rose?"

I turned to the Doctor, alarmed by how Finch had spoken of this Rose. The Doctor seemed just the same. "She's fine."

"And Martha? Donna?"

"All absolutely fine."

Finch nodded thoughtfully as he paced slowly. "And you're new...friend. Absolutely aware of what happens to your companions? After all, dear Rose is trapped, Martha a soldier, and...Donna? Does she even know your name?"

I saw what Finch was doing, and an anger piped up inside me as I glanced fleetingly at the Doctor's stone solid face. In the month I'd been with him, he'd explained about his companions, and I understood the lonely time lord. He was old, centuries old, and despite his youthfully handsome appearance, it would be vain to think I was the first.

"Mr Finch, you said you had much to discuss with the Doctor. Please, as a human I am not as immune to time as he is." The words flew out before I had chance to stop myself.

Finch's lips curved into a small grin just showing his small yellowing teeth. He halted in his tracks and glared my way. "Brave child. You chose well, Doctor."

"She has a point, Finch. Get on with it."

"A-ha, if we could just retreat a moment. I am simply curious that this happy coincidence has occurred. You must have your reasons for being here, and yet you appeared... surprised."

"We received the message. We traced the location to this building, to this warehouse, as its origin."

"And what message might this be?"

I glanced to the Doctor, for any certainty that this was the sender. I had to admit, it didn't make sense for him to send it and act ignorant. He simply sat back in his chair, his hands webbed together on his stomach.

"My mistake."

I frowned, but felt a great relief, as though something unrealised was safely unnoticed by Finch. If he hadn't sent it, someone else must have. I recalled the message, the moment it appeared on the screen. 1/1/1. But, if he had accomplices...

Finch, meanwhile, watched us as though pure fascination held his feet in place. A sly smile tugged at one corner of his mouth. "You never strike me as one for simple mistakes, Doctor. But no bother, we have other business to which to attend."

His eyes peered up to check we were listening, and began pacing again with one carefully controlled polished shoe forward. "Good. Now then, back to business. I must say, I have carefully rehearsed this conversation many a time in this room while alone. As you may have guessed, I live a solitary existence-"

"Yeah-...sorry about that."

"Oh not at all, Doctor. Oh! The deaths of my kin were mere disturbances. In fact, they rather slowed me down. They were considerably younger than myself, more inexperienced. Waited for orders, no initiative to speak of. But, be that as it may, they were of my kind. I suspect you and I are alike in that aspect, Doctor. The last of our race."

The man in question remained silent, and I stared. Had I just heard right? I never really suspected he was the last of his race full stop, it never dawned on me.

"Its happened to hundreds of races, and it'll happen to more."

"But wouldn't you like to change that?" Finch questioned, almost passionately. I switched my eyes between the two men as though they were the hero and pantomime villain, arch enemies in comic books, or simply two people linked only by one thing.

The last of their kinds.

"Fixed points in time, Finch. I have more experience with those than anyone."

"And you've bent the rules somewhat."

"Only slightly, and that was a push. Contrary to what you might believe, having time and space at your finger tips doesn't grant you the power to twist it beyond recognition. Just one little thing...BOOM! This room doesn't exist, I'm on a different planet and she never met this handsome devil. SO, I am just wondering, since you're beyond clever and mad enough to have considered this possibility, why you would want to burden yourself with that power."

"You speak of power as though it were a curse, not a gift."

"Situations change the nature of power."

Finch nodded appreciatively. "True words. And this is a desperate one. I gather you have realised the aim of my work force."

"Well, throw green screens, hypnosis and a Krillitane in a barrel and what do you get?"

"The solved Skasis Paradigm. It's only a matter of time."

"What's that?" I asked, my voice ringing out with inexperience and confusion. I had a pretty good idea after following the conversation, but, even sitting here and witnessing it, I couldn't comprehend that it could be true.

The two men exchanged glances, but I didn't give them a chance to answer.

"You're saying that the control of time and space can be had with one puzzle?"

"You have chosen very well Doctor, I commend you. Curious human, fast mind, I could use her."

"Don't be getting ideas, Finch."

The man sniggered, eyes glistening with dark amusement. "So protective of your companions, Doctor. I almost forgot to, what do they say, 'name the price'? Yes, that's it. So juvenile."

"Name it," The Doctor ordered sternly. This was truly serious business, and I braced myself.

"Rather fair, you might agree. I solve the Skasis Paradigm, with full control of the universe and time surrounding it. Or...the more favourable for you, and your precious humans, is the alternative."

"Which is?"

"Which, dear Mia, is my work force. There are exactly 325 working down there, humanity given up in exchange for extreme intellect almost on par with my own. I have, during my solitude, created a way, using extracts of my own DNA, of converting these humans into my own kind. We will then, my relatives and I, find a new planet to occupy. The Krillitanes will have a chance to _be_ again. I have heard much of the famous Doctor, but not of him helping save a race from total extinction. One that has, in respect, already been annihilated."

The last few words rang out in the silence, entwining and gradually unravelling with strands of thought, freezing me in place. I suddenly felt very, very small, in a room with two aliens from far off galaxies. The mere thought was beyond comprehensible. In that moment, I questioned whether i'd made the right decision a month ago. Eyes darting around, avoiding keen eyes, they chose to focus again on the Doctor, the man Finch had chosen to make the choice. I expected him to appear as a man with the weight of the world on his shoulders, but instead, his long legs stretched out before him and he stood casually.

"How does this _convertion _work?"

Finch lit up instantly, and took the Doctor's seat in one swift movement. "I'm so glad you asked Doctor."

With a few taps on the keyboard, surprisingly slow, the laptop was turned away from me so only the Doctor could see. His face barely faltered from disinterest as lights flashed of all colours in his large chocolate eyes.

"Well? What is it?"

It was the Doctor who spoke up, and Finch sat back to watch. I noticed, almost at once, he wasn't as excitable as usual when discussing complex science topics to my human brain.

"Imagine that, say, if a human cell is exposed to a carcinogen, mutations occur within the cell. This is basically what is happening here, apparently. So you're saying, Finch, somewhere in this building is a device, and it'll detonate-sorry, expose them, to a radiation."

"A radiation that shall rewrite their cellular structure to match the Krillitane perfectly. Call it my plan B, I thought of it back before I was headmaster at that grotesque school. And, the beauty of this kind is that it shall not penetrate beyond these four walls. Only those and I shall be exposed, and it shall only target the humans within these walls. Everyone else shall be as human as you like them."

"Did they know what they were signing up for?" I asked doubtfully, sickened by how he was convincing even me that he had the best intentions. Somehow, as though I could read him, I knew there was something he was avoiding, and the Doctor knew too.

"Of course, dear Mia. Ethics are my utmost priority. A contract was signed by each member before they sat at the computer."

I nodded. "Can we see it?"

He let out a short snigger that crinkled his long nose, as though he were an off-put gargoyle. When they flickered back up, there was nothing but threat and warning in them. "Confidentiality, I'm afraid."

"And yet you're placing a decision of this nature into the hands of an outsider. If that were me, I'd want to know what I was getting in to."

The man in question watching with large, probing eyes, and flicked them towards me for just a second, full of pride before they winked mischievously. That spurred me on.

"You wouldn't want there to be a catch, or a gap you failed to cover. I'm sure no sane, _fully conscious _person, let alone 325 of them, would sign their humanity away with the click of a pen. I'm not even sure they would in exchange for the control of the universe. I know I wouldn't, because you know, don't you? I think that, given the opportunity, you would change yourself. Into something like me. Or them. Anything that couldn't possibly harness that power, and has the ability to plough on through life regardless."

I couldn't escape the pale blue hatred in those orbs, staring up with an anger so old, and such bitter truth. It almost hurt just to stare him out.

"You've been trapped like this. As a hybrid. One that can only stand to be around its own kind. But when they change, into those things, you won't be one of those either, will you?"

"You can't change back. The curse of the Krillitane. Once the wings are mutilated, in such a way as yours, especially burnt...you're trapped at the half way point. And sunlight can't touch a krillitane unless it's in it's fully human form. So where does that leave you in this world..." His voice trailed off as he crouched next to Finch, who was still staring me out with white hot rage. His hands were beginning to shake in his lap. The Doctor examined his face as though it were a scientific anomaly.

Suddenly, he stood up, shoved his hands in his pockets, and pulled his thoughtful face. "See, theres something i'm still missing here. Why would you, Mr Finch, Mr Self-Absorbed Power of Time etc want to change a load of humans when he can't join them in his current form? _And _when does this thing go off? I don't see it. It's not random because you need me to make the decision...or do you?"

He came back to crouching next to him again. "Does my word matter? I know im only a _'Time Lord' _but really, is it that import...Oh." Realisation dawned on his freckled face. "Oh...i'm not integral at all, am I? But I am needed."

"You think I would leave such a decision in the hands of the ever so ethical Doctor? He who thinks he can crawl himself and his companions out of anything?" Finch snarls, practically spat his words, all genteel qualities stripped from him, his eyes becoming ever more savage as they remained locked on me. "You conceided for a second that the imbecile who very nearly committed genocide of the krillitanes could be forgiven so easily, and that I wouldn't want my revenge? You're getting old, Doctor," he spat spitefully, "and it's about time you watched as the power so tragically _flung _at you is taken by someone who would use it, who would appreciate it."

He pushed a button on the keyboard with so much force he nearly smashed it, and within seconds the door opened, revealing two men in overalls. Both appeared large enough to lift a car between them, with eyes so distant they probably wouldn't care it they dropped it on us.

"Take them to the cage."


	3. Chapter 3

The door slammed behind us with a resounding _bang _that echoed throughout the dark room. In reality, the cage was just an alcove at the back of the warehouse, with two opposing benches and a window at the top of the door. The only light that filtered in was the impossible light from the work floor.

The square beam of light flickered, and was obstructed by Finch's sihloette. His shadowed, leathery face grimaced coldly. "Just in time, Doctor. Just in time to witness your genocide...reversed."

"Finch, you can't," The Doctor pleaded, his fingers trying the door handle. Finch smiled. "I would have thought you regretful of such a crime; it's not often you see them undone."

"You're taking innocent humans! What about their lives, eh?!"

Finch gave a lingering look from his stark-blue eyes, as though waiting for it to click. Then his footsteps clicked slowly, and he was gone. The only thing in the way of the light now was the brown spikey head of the Doctor, watching.

Silence fell as the footsteps died away, and in a flash the Doctor was rummaging in his pocket and tried the lock with the sonic screwdriver. The long drone of the now familiar buzz was a disappointing reminder that Finch was perhaps on step ahead.

"Wood! It's embarrassing, stupid thing!"

I smiled a little. "Shhh, it's sensitive," I echoed, and he turned and looked at me. His eyes were a battle between amusement and keeping up that determined, angry outburst. I beckoned for him to sit, and he managed to fit his long legs between me and the bench. There was no way he could stretch out in here.

"Now, we have time to think about what we're going to do."

He crossed his arms, and sent me a dark look. He shook his head curtly. I tightened my eyes in question.

"That code," he began, almost clicking the end of the word, "is a countdown. 1/1/1."

I nodded. "Yes? That could mean 1 year, 1 month, 1 day."

He shook his head again. "I reckon we got here at the right time. Just in time."

I looked away into a random stop and thought over his words. I tried different amounts of time in my head, and compared them to how much time we'd actually been in the building. From when we landed, from when we received the message in the first place. I checked my watch, and frowned.

"It's stopped."

He pulled out a watch I'd never seen him wear, and a similar expression painted itself on his face. "Someone doesn't want us to know the time."

I leaned my head back on the wall. It hadn't been an hour yet, half an hour at most. But i'd been feeling so disoriented since arriving, I wasn't so sure. I was banking on a Time Lord to be tuned in to all the clocks in the world at that moment.

"Do you think Finch sent that message?"

I looked back to the Doctor, who was watching me absently. He looked a bit dazed.

Suddenly he snapped out of it, and brushed his hair back with both hands, widening his eyes as though tired. "I doubt it, he didn't know what we were on about. I don't know who sent it."

I suddenly thought of my favourite time travel film, and remembered how Bill and Ted told themselves they were going to place an object somewhere, and it would appear there straight away, an action by their future selves.

"Maybe we sent it to ourselves."

He had no time to reply, and I had no time to laugh, or even comprehend another thought. The room was a bright white, and he flew over to hide me in his arms. "Don't look!"

The light was so bright it was loud, invading each sense with such intensity I couldn't escape. But I followed suit. I clenched my eyes shut and huddled in his chest, his back to the window and his cheek pressing against the side of my head.

The moment lasted longer than it felt, and it was gone in a literal flash.

Silence seemed to fall with a crash that made my ears ring. I almost missed his voice ask it I was alright.

Before I had chance to breathe he was at the door, trying the lock again. Nothing worked. I walked up to it, and looked at the pane of glass. It was segmented and smashed into hundreds of tiny suspended crystals. Slowly, I put a finger to the door, and it swung open.

"The light must have burned the lock to ash or something," I whispered. He packed the screwdriver away gently, as though feeling guilty for early comments. Together, we scanned the room, deathly silent.

Instead of people sat at the desks, statues replaced them, covered in a film that made them appear a washed out colour, thick and shiny and misty. The Doctor approached on, and stroked a finger across it's head.

"Some kind of...placenta? Whatever it is..."

He poked it, and he didn't give. He tried the screwdriver, and nothing happened. He grabbed a chair, and slammed it into the solid glass-like cocoon. It came out the other side with the legs bent.

"...it's indestructible," I finished. I looked up instinctively to the upper lone window, and he was there. Hands tied behind his back in pride, now doubt. Right then, I understood the hostility. I hated him, too.

"He can't do this," I breathed helplessly, keeping my eyes on the figure. Despite not being able to see his eyes, I felt them on me, staring me out, connecting with my unwavering ones. "Taking innocent lives and changing them...changing their _humanity..._literally."

"We need to get to the Shadow Proclemation. This is...against nature," he ranted, grimacing at the pods around him. His movements were fast and sharp and angered as he made his way around the check a couple more, and then as he ran to the door. I followed, half walking, half jogging. I was too weary to shout in the ironic graveyard type place.

"What is that? Space police?"

He tried the door, which was lacking a handle, and nothing sounded. He pushed it, just I did with the door to the alcove, to test if the lock had disintegrated, but it was a pull door anyway. I noticed how incredibly snug the door looked in the frame, and walked over to see if my thinner fingers would work into the gap. No such luck.

The Doctor took a large step back, and brushed his hands through his hair again, his eyes wide in frustration. "Brilliant," he forced out, and I began to scan the room. I didn't suppose anything thinner than a nail could squeeze in and be of any use, but I felt the need to keep myself busy. I was looking for a full 10 minutes.

Finally, I came to a stop, and attempted to calm myself, to supress the need to panic. I couldn't let him see me like that. Even if he did seem to occupied with...what ever he was doing. I looked around, and found him half way up the wall, a few meters across from the door.

"Hey! Spiderman!"

He turned his head, the screwdriver gripped between his teeth while his hands gripped the rungs of the near invisible ladder. "Yeah?!" he shouted passed the object.

I shook my head and let out a nervous laugh, slowing my pulse as the alien watched me. "Nothing, was going to say, I didn't know you could climb flat walls."

He didn't answer, and resumed climbing as I made my way over.

"What you found?"

"I think...I found Mr Finch's answer to life," he mused, reaching his long arm to grapple the small silver ball in the corner. It wouldn't reach. Then he did something that made my pulse jolt and freeze.

Wrapping a leg around one of the rungs, he let go of the ladder and reached with both hands.

I held my breath, but he caught it. It didn't seem to be attached by anything.

He placed a grip back on the ladder, and I let out a much needed exhalation. "Catch," he said, and threw the small object as he climbed back down.

"What is it?"

We were back in the alcove, sat opposite each other as he examined the silver ball in his hands from behind his glasses. The screwdriver was buzzing away, and I thought about how he understood the information feeding from the two devices. The smooth surface gave nothing away.

"I'm not quite sure. It's alien technology, but the materials used are from earth, so it's make shift. Brilliant, genius in fact. Capable of changing the DNA of any living thing...into any living thing...with just a bit of scrap metal and blood..."

"You sound like you admire it...he didn't strike me as so intelligent, really."

He peered up at me, his brown eyes sharp with question. "What makes you say that?"

I shrugged. "I'm not sure...he doesn't...strike one...as having the ability...to be accredited with so much...imagination."

...

The Doctor's hearts quickened pace. He placed the object beside him with little care as to the force he used and placed both hands around Mia's face. "Mia, Mia listen to me. If you can hear me, tell me-"

"She can't hear you, Doctor," the distant voice sang slowly, lips barely moving as the ghost of Mia's voice haunted him with his name. "I daresay the poor child is tired, relieved for the break of her consciousness...The Doctor has placed one in rather a situation, hasn't one, Doctor?" The stretched eyes danced over his face, the only part of the body showing any signed of movement. The edges were turning red at the strain. "One could save her, Doctor...is that not what you most desire? Her safety? Ah, but you are so _keen _to keep her by your side...travelling the stars...Do you care so much, Doctor? For her safety? It can be done."

The Doctor felt his own hands shaking, sweating against the skin of his companion. He did want her to be safe. As safe as safe could be...if it meant not losing her. His eyes stung at the prospect.

"Please, just let her go."

The corners of her mouth twitched, the fastest movement the entity was probably capable of. "Begging, Doctor...so uncharacteristic. But one does not desire to let her go...she is too...extraordinary...a mind."

"Yes, yes she is, and you're killing her. You're burning that brain up with your energy, and a human cannot take so much."

The eyes widened, impossibly, marginally. "N...no. One cant. One refuses."

"That mind...the mind you have fallen to...it's not going to be around much longer...not with you there...let it go."

A tear escaped the unnaturally wide green eye, and the Doctor wiped it away with his thumb, pity swelling in his throat. "You have to."

"It hurts, Doctor," a weak voice whispered. The eyes blinked, as though in slow motion. When they opened, they were almost back to normal size. "My eyes..."

The Doctor ignored her last tears and took her in his arms, whispering in her ear that it would be ok. He knew he would do anything to save her, help her, and he told her that. She nodded, and he felt her eyelashes blink rapidly, a sure sign that she was back.

What he couldn't tell her was that the entity would be back. That it wouldn't give up on her. Neither it, or he, would.

Such an important human, it seemed.


	4. Chapter 4

When we approached the pods again, I stayed close to the Doctor. Just like he'd asked. Just how I knew would be safest.

We came to the one next to the damaged chair, and the Doctor examined it. It was visibly mistier, and the mould thickness left the facial features indistinguishable. They simply looked now like snow figures sat in chairs, some melted and frozen again around the chairs.

"Are you feeling ok?" He peered his dark eyes over the rim of his glasses again, and I smiled automatically. "Of course."

"They should be coming out of it soon...if the process continues this rapidly."

I nodded, and looked up at the empty window. Some of the anger in me had disappeared from before, and I felt...not weaker...but pitying. While the Doctor was presumably begging the entity to let me go, I was lost. I was lost, and wandering in whatever the entity was showing me. Burning worlds, skies blue with fire and trees glowing violet, smoke a black so deep I was almost lost in the void of it. I heard shouts, screams from frozen faces of angels, watching one another in panic and simply unable to move in doing so. Quantum locked by fear.

Was that what it was like for them? The Krillitanes? I knew only a handful were left when the Doctor killed them, because of what they were doing. But what for the ones before them? Were they so evil? Would they have been under Finch's influence?

My head buzzed with questions, but the Doctor's voice pulled me out of them.

"Mia?"

His voice was so quiet, and the word so small. But I heard something in that word that i'd only heard glimpses of before. Familiarity...caring. My stomach fluttered at the idea that this extraordinary man could care for a human girl, even a little.

"Sorry, just internally muttering."

He nodded to himself. "Well, when you feel your eyes stinging, tell me. I don't want them dropping out."

It sounded partly like a joke, so I laughed, and he smiled in response. But once I was laughed, I could barely stop. It felt good, and familiar. Then a loud crash forced me to sober up.

I had no time to look to the Doctor in question, because what I did see set my eyes in stone, my feet frozen. "Wh...what?!"

"Run!"

The hand grabbed mine and dragged me until I was running on my own, and we rushed back into the alcove and closed the door behind us. The creature was flying around frantically like a caged bird aimlessly.

"That's a krillitane?" I asked, staring at in from the shadows through the hole in the door. The doctor nodded. "In original form. I've never seen one in original form before."

"What about Finch and the one's with him?"

He stared in awe at it, occasionally crashing into a desk and screaming at it. Actually screaming in anger. "There are some characteristics quite different. This one's wings are much bigger, and it's only an infant."

I followed the krillitane's every movement with my eyes, and drew closer to the Doctor to see properly. Flying aimlessly. Trapped, an eagle in captivity.

"Beautiful."

It wasn't the Doctor's voice. It was my own. Because it was, in a way that was unearthly and unfamiliar. Untainted, not deformed like Finch. A raw creature, unaffected by Finch's hate and thirst for power. As of yet, anyway. It was an alien in the truest sense of the word, but not in a bad way.

"Do you think?" I nodded. "We need to get it away from Finch."

After a couple of moments, the Doctor whispered. "I have an idea. You're probably going to hate it."

Before I could protest, he opened the door in a swift motion and closed it behind him. I thought about shouting after him, but I didn't want to alert the creature. "You're crazy," I simply said to myself, but he turned and grinned. Then he looked up to the blacked out window, and I instantly caught on. I watched, frozen in fear, as he jumped on a desk, and stood to prepare himself, defiant. He removed his coat lodged the sonic screwdriver in his mouth, and his coat fell to the floor as the krillitane finally noticed him.

"Food," I thought to myself. That is what it sees. I smacked my mouth to conceal the scream as it flew towards him.

In one motion, he grabbed a wing and flipped himself up on the creature's back, and it was smaller than I expected in relation to the Doctor. About the size of a large horse...with wings.

It flew around, panicked, and eventually past the window. The Doctor, ever calm, aimed the screwdriver at the window. It smashed, and the Doctor jumped, too soon. He was grabbing the edge with his bare fingers.

Finch appeared from the shadows.

...

"Ah, how delightful! You could easily die from this height."

The Doctor could feel his fingers slipping, so he tried with all his might to pull himself up. "Finch, don't...if they get out, they'll die."

"Don't you think I know that, time lord? I was simply making an observation. Help him up."

His two henchmen appeared, and tugged the man into the room, dropping him on the smashed glass behind the wall. "Thanks," he cursed sarcastically. He thought of Mia, whom he'd left trapped in the alcove. Defenceless against a frightened new born Krillitane, one he'd just aggravated by jumping on it.

_Im so, so sorry, Mia. But I'll get you out of there. I promise._

_..._

I breathed a huge gust of relief as I watched the Doctor being helped into the room. I was quietly betting on two outcomes; one, they would let him fall and risk the lives of the newborns on the confidence of luck. Two, they would be smart enough to realise that the Doctor was more powerful than luck.

"Please, whatever, or whoever is watching," I whispered under my breath, "help me get back to him."

I closed my eyes as I rested my hand on the door, feeling it under my hand as I prepared to let its anchoring nature go. It made me feel safe, not as safe as the Doctor. But it was wooden. If the sonic screwdriver couldn't suss it, I wouldn't let anything else. I laughed at how the Doctor would feel if he heard me say that. I let the door go, and lunged one foot before the other, into the now trashed arena.


	5. Chapter 5

The giant winged creature clocked me straight away. It hovered, its sharp eyes locked. I knew, because I didn't look away once, not even to check whether I was going to trip over a chair. Which I nearly did, several times.

I counted the small, pulsing beats of its leathery wings, louder than my own heart drumming in my ears, in sync with each other and my footsteps, rhythmic so not to freeze from pure terror. I didn't blink, I couldn't blink. The creature looked fast.

_Don't say a word, Doctor, if youre smart. You'll startle it._

_Of course, dummy. He already knows that. He knows everything._

_Smart ass. And that's why you lo-_

"Brave child! You show courage at last!"

Finch's voice shot through me like a venom covered bullet. My heart stopped, and the beats rang out, deafening me.

But I daren't look away.

The creatures eyes darted between Finch and I, looking confused with very little secrecy about it. Its claws flexed, its snout twitched nervously, almost angry.

"You've chosen a brave one Doctor, it's a shame she's about to succumb to her ill minded bravey. Is there not a saying, bravery can be confused with stupidity?" He drawled out, his thick pompous voice nasally drawing out each word for it to be heard. I couldn't keep my eyes from the Doctor any longer. I glanced. He was locked in between the two henchmen, hes face full of panic as he struggled against the strong arms. His eyes were on mine.

"Finch, please."

The man turned nonchalantly to the Doctor, eyeing him politely. "And just what do you expect me to do when a juvenile Krillitane is concerned, put it on a leash?" He laughed, as though the Doctor were a silly child. "No, it deserves to roam free. And kill what it chooses."

I heard each word, because he meant me to. I wanted me frightened. And I was. But, as I tore my eyes from the Doctor, I noticed the Krillitane still hovering. And it was looking straight at its master.

I sensed the anger within it, displaying it almost like a human. Its eyes blazed with the light of a thousand torches, its claws now clenched so tight I expected blood to be dripping to the ground.

I took my chance. I bolted.

The ladders weren't too far away, and my shorter legs took me faster than I ever thought possible. I climbed, and when I was at the right height, I sat on one of the rungs. I was just above the Krillitane, its wing almost hitting me at it stayed afloat. I could almost ignore the Doctor's shouts and protestations and the laughter of Finch for all the adrenaline scorching my system.

It all suddenly seemed to go silent. Anticipation.

I had to do it quick, my hands were sweating too much to remain on the metal bars for too long.

A sudden screech made my entire body jolt forward. Instantly, I lunged, and before I knew it I was holding on the neck. Just in time for the creature to launch itself in the direction of the window.

The Doctor had seen many great things. Many stupid things. Many down right mental things. Most he'd committed himself and played back later so he could feel all the more brilliant, but this one almost topped at least a quarter of his stunts. For now, all he could do was watch. Watch as his new companion risked her life just to get to them.

Finch's face was one he'd never expected to see on such a cold hearted man. He watched as though it were slow motion, morphing from a smile, to serious, to frown, to anger, until eventually his mouth was agape and his eyes wide with ferocious anger and fright. He knew it was coming straight for him.

"Move! Move out of the way!" he ordered the henchmen, but they were already moving, letting his arms go so fast they nearly took one each with them. He then ran just behind the wall of the window to catch Mia. It already felt like the last few minutes had stretched hours, and it felt too long. Not being able to see her, it didn't know whether she was safe.

The krillitane darted into the room, flinging Mia off of its back, but the wrong side. Taking up most of the room, he couldn't reach her, and the screeches made it impossible to shout and hear even himself.

"Mia!"

Only thunderous high pitched wails answered, and that's when he remembered Finch. He looked around the room, filled with krillitane wings, and finally found a pair of pale blue eyes. Only for a second, pinned against the opposing wall. Filled with such a hatred that could burn up a sun. If he had that power.

The black board the krillitane was pinning him against began to give, and splinters began to protrude. With disconcerting finality, the shards began popping around Finch's head, and daylight began to filter though. The Doctor nearly thought about saving him, showing him mercy. But this poor creature, nay, human, deserved its revenge.

…

My legs felt like jelly, so all I could do was watch. Watch as the thing that was once human take its fury out on the most detestable man I'd ever met. All I could think was whether the Doctor was ok, and, if so, what was he thinking of this. Wings and dust and debris and screams were preventing me from finding out.

Daylight suddenly shot through with its blinding glory, and in a flash, the room was empty. Only the ghosts of the wails echoed, and the faint, already fading scent of burning.


	6. Chapter 6

"You alright?"

My eyes found the large, skinny hand, flexing in invitation. I smiled at it and grabbed it, helping me up in a quick motion. My legs still felt weak. Perhaps it was relief.

"Are they gone?" I asked in a whisper, my voice catching on the dryness of not talking, nerves and the dusty atmosphere. I watched him as he nodded solemnly. "Yep."

I looked back at the large hole in the wall, allowing us a splintered view of London from the ground. So like Finch, to make sure his workers were the only ones underground.

"Poor creature. I guess it was still partly human, afterall."

The Doctor answered with a silence that somehow was more pronounced than before.

A few seconds later, he gave a small squeeze of my hand. "Lets get back."

The entire walk back was silent and tense. My eyes still rung with the screams, my feet following where the hand holding mine was guiding me. I felt sick from the fumes of the burning, from the guilt, from the realisation that hadn't yet hit me. Aliens, evil aliens. They existed. And they could take human form.

At that thought I looked up to the Doctor, a brilliant man. But it was so strange to think of him as alien. He was so….human like. To see an alien such as him and one such as Finch in the same room, they were worlds apart. Literally, and morally. In every way, in fact.

He peered down at me then, and saw me blatantly staring. He smiled. "I know, a little bit foxy."

I laughed and he looked away, looking a little offended. "Not why I was staring."

"Well you know how to make a man feel good about his self-image," he remarked distantly. It was forced humour, to lighten to dense atmosphere separating us from the world. We emerged into the lobby.

I simply looked down at his very human hand concealing mine. How similar they were captured me.

We exited the seemingly cursed building, and found the familiar blue police box, waiting for us as civilians just walked around it. I didn't realise that I even could miss the squeaking doors until I heard them conceal me in the safety of the huge interior. I stayed by them as the Doctor flung his coat on the rail and went to lean back on the control panel, facing me. He crossed his arms and eyed me speculatively.

"I know, I'm gorgeous," I retorted, but flickered my eyes from him to around the room, and allowed my fingers to fidget. Finally, I looked down, his glare boring into me like light through a magnifying glass.

"I know what I did was dangerous."

"You're not so stupid to not realise it. You could have died."

"I know that."

The words echoed into the silence, and I knew he expected me to regret it.

Instead, I heard his feet shuffle on the ground and I looked up to find him facing the control panel.

"What are you doing?"

"Something I should have done a while ago."

The pulsing beats of the TARDIS took over, and the vessel rattled. I grabbed on to the rails for stability.

"You're not taking me home," I ordered over the noise, but he didn't reply.

Finally, he yanked a lever, and the TARDIS stopped moving, the sounds fading away into the distance.

"Where are we?"

The Doctor approached, not taking his coat, instead aiming straight for the doors. The stood opposite me, barely a foot between us. At this level, I realised I wasn't a ridiculous amount shorter than him.

"Maybe home might be our next stop, depending on…"

"On what?"

He pushed the door open behind me with one long arm, and I was shocked to find that I felt no breeze. Not even a bit.

I turned, not expecting to find what I did. Both blue doors open, revealing the bare nakedness of space. And my eyes were struggling to keep up with the aray of colours. Stars of all colours shining brightly, partly concealed with gas clouds of blues and greens and purples. Random bits of rock floated past, some large enough to be considered meteors. But none of it frightened me. I simply soaked it all up, too stunned to believe where I was and what I was seeing.

"This is what I fight for, each day. And not just Krillitanes, and its not always the peaceful and wonderous planets ive shown you. And sometimes, I don't get to be the one that saves them. Sometimes, its too late. Can you handle that?"

I poured over the scene before I answered. When I did, I nodded. "That I can handle. But it's the man I travel with who needs the help. Not just the different races out there."

I felt his eyes peer down at me, and so I matched his look. He seemed confused. I just smiled gently, and he slowly reached out to close the doors. He returned back to the centre, but this time sat on a chair and leaned back, crossing his arms.

"Are you sure?"

"Am I sure that I can handle it or am I sure that you need help? I'd answer yes for both."

I approached him, and stood next to the control panel, facing him.

"You feel guilty for not being able to help that Krillitane back there."

His eyes dropped, and he loosened his arms so he could lean his elbows on his knees.

"I could have saved them-"

"How?"

He stood then, and began walking around the ship. "I'd have found a way. Given the time."

"Which we didn't have. You said it yourself, you cant always save them. Sometimes its too late. But think about it. That race was extinct."

He glanced up to meet my eyes from behind the column.

"If we hadn't arrived, a new race of pure krillitane would have been left in the hands of Finch, for him to shape and deform and twist into an army praying on humans and other races, all for his thirst for power and control. But, because of you, a new race has been given another chance. One without Finch. Without you, that wouldn't have happened, and more lives would have been lost."

We stayed, watching each other, not taking our eyes away for a moment.

Finally, he smiled a gentle smile, and returned to his seat. This time, I joined him, just as he threw his feet up to rest on the edge of the panel. "You know what?"

I looked back at him, just to see him grin that big cheesy grin of his. "You're brilliant, you are."

The mood instantly relaxed, and we took our time to come up with a plan in a total of two minutes. We returned back to the building exactly 12 minutes after we'd left, but this time, we landed in the room itself, below ground. Getting to work straight away after great relief to not find any more krillitanes to have hatched, the Doctor rushed round and worked the sonic screw driver on them to stabilize development, just long enough to move them. It turned out that the TARDIS seemed to have unlimited room, and we found ourselves tiptoeing around a pod at each turn.

"Right, is that all of them?" the Doctor called, just before we left. I nodded and smiled confidently.

"Ok then, Allons-y!"

Apparently he'd already found them a planet.

…

Their new home was…well…beyond words. Baron, and bare, except for mountains upon mountains, reaching so high into the skyline they looked set to pierce the pitch black sky. Once we had taken each of the pods onto the surface, we returned to the TARDIS and left, with little more than a look back. They were going to be ok, I was sure of it.

"Right! Where now?"

I thought about it for a second, and one word rang out. As much as I tried to ignore it.

"Home."

His face faltered, and he hesitated. "Home. Fine. Good!"

"It's just, you said-"

"No! It's fine, but….i was so sure that you….that we…..Oh! Never mind, home, next stop!"

I watched him frantically buzz around the control board, but his eyes, the ones he tried to keep me from seeing with his thick rimmed glasses, were visably distant. Perhaps upset…did he think that I meant…?

"Doctor-"

"There was so much I was going to show you," he said at last, and approached me. Finally, he was looking at me, and I could see those large brown, sad eyes. "Earth, a billion years away, the end of worlds and the beginning of others. Thousands, so many new ones that you could be witness to. The birth of entire galaxies…"

The TARDIS landed with a foreboding jolt, and if he's eyes weren't so sad, I would have giggled. The smile must have given me away.

"When you say home, you mean…."

"Yes." I laughed as his embarrassment revealed itself. "If your eyes weren't so tragic I would have allowed you to go on! You want me to stay! Ha!"

…

"I just…i…"

He watched the suspiciously happy woman almost skip her way out of the TARDIS, reminded of the last time he'd jumped to a conclusion like that. If he wasn't so relieved he would have slapped himself for being so stupid. Of course, she wouldn't have said all she did if she didn't mean it. And while he wished for her safety for than anything, he honestly didn't know what he'd do if she left him now.

He caught up with her defiantly from the blue box, and emerged into the street neither had seen for a month.

"Come on, soon we can get to seeing all that stuff you promised me," she reassured, but he could tell she was glowing with amusement. He tried not to laugh with her. She held his hand as they approached the door, and it was shaking. He squeezed it reassuringly.

"They'd better be home," she whispered stubbornly, but her breath was shaky. Slowly, she rose her hand to knock the door.

…

I'd missed them, but mostly I was worried for how they'd react. My dad, he was fine, but my mum…she was a little more to handle. Flaming red temper, like her hair. Where I got mine from.

The door opened, and that familiar red cloud of hair put a fear into my heart, but I stood my ground.

"Mia! Oh sweetheart!" I was yanked into a hug, too stunned to reciprocate. I'd glanced my mother's face, the strained eyes, red with tears. My hand was still attached to my new friend's. It felt slightly loose.

"Mom! Mom, its ok, I'll explain!"

She pulled back, and brought me to the doorstep. "Like hell will you, missus! Do you know how long its been?! A month and a week! Yeah! I aint got these from a fight with eyeshadow, you know!" she ranted, pointing at the red bloches beneath her eyes.

Then her eyes met the Doctors, and I froze. Oh god, help him if she thinks he abducted me.

I looked back, to see his expression frozen in shock.

His mouth began moving, but only small sounds came out, so he just motioned to the blue box. Then he ran.

"Yeah! You'd better run, weirdo! I'll call the police on you!"

I watched as the Doctor disappeared into the box, and it disappeared. I felt numb, leaning against the door. Had my mom actually scared him that much? Coward.

I felt guilty for calling him that instantly.

He must have had his reasons. It would be pretty easy for my mum to assume that he had indeed abducted me. I swallowed hard, and closed the door. I leaned back as I heard the woman in the next room.

"Police please. Of course it's a bloody emergency! Am I phoning for dieting advice?!" Her voice bellowed.

"Mom, that isn't necessary…"

"What! You were kidnapped by a strange man, of course it's-"

"Mom! Listen to me! That wasn't how it was at all!"

Just then a knock at the door scared the hell out of me, and I turned to open it. The doctor beckoned me out.

"She's calling the police right now. I was just about the explain…where did the TARDIS go?!"

"She cant see it," he said frantically, and ruffled his hair. His eyes were wide.

I scrambled for an answer. "Look, she'll listen…eventually…what do you mean she cant see it?"

He closed his eyes, and shoved his hands in his pockets. "You're mother is Donna Noble. She once saved the world, and if she so much as remembers anything about me, that past of hers, in particular that blue box, she will die."


	7. Chapter 7

The words were nonsense, of course. Sarcasm, surely, he was pissed at the way she'd treated him.

But did I really believe that? I may not have known the man very long, but I knew how understanding he was, how intelligent and wise his incredulously impossible age made him. He could completely empathise with her, and how the situation looked. Her daughter going off with a strange man? Very suspicious in the papers.

I wasn't sure how long he'd left me thinking and mulling over those words, and I was sure I'd forgotten some of them. The only thing that mattered now was that he knew my mother.

"Was she…did she, erm, travel with you, like I do?"

He nodded, his eyes focused on me as though I held all the answers to his dilemma…what was it again? I held his eyes for a long moment.

"How long ago?"

It seemed trivial, even to me, but I had to know, I just wasn't clear why. It annoyed me in some way that she'd known him before me, and had the audacity to conceal his existence...and to forget it was another thing altogether!

"Well, technically about 6 months ago, by TARDIS time…by my time. Something must be broken…I just remember landing in the woods expecting London as always, sometimes I just let her take me to wherever she fancies," he recalled, brushing his hair back with his large hand and leaning on the wall next to the door, just out of sight through any windows. In the short pause, I heard my mother shouting over the phone, so angry that she was talking impossibly fast.

"And here I land…what is it, around 25 years later? I meet you…Donna Noble's daughter."

"Coincidence?" I implicated weakly, deciphering the meaning behind his musings. Surely he didn't believe in destiny.

He shook his head. "Something's always tied me to her, this family, just them." He shook his head slowly as he thought. "No. Must just be the TARDIS…I don't know…recognising." He saw the look I gave him as he continued to personify his space ship. "I'm clutching at straws."

Just then, the door clicked open, and my mother's face fell like thunder. But her words were threateningly slow and quiet. "You stay away from my daughter."

I snapped a look between both parties, him staring away and her glaring at him, thinking she was staring him down into shame. I knew I'd be losing the battle sooner or later, so I complied with one look from him. His brown eyes were sombre, but indicative. It would be best, they told me.

As soon as I was behind the door frame, she closed the door shut, closing any image of the Doctor away forever. I stared blankly, waiting for any hint of his return. But I saw his blurred image fade the further it got from the door. So I waited. For what, I wasn't certain. A snap, like string breaking, tying us together. Severed as we were, with no way of saying goodbye. That seemed…well….vague. I was too vague to even register that he was gone, and that I couldn't possibly see him again.

I traced back slowly, not taking my eyes from the door once, hoping to see a long brown object show up again. Eventually I had to stop looking as I came into the living room I'd not seen for over a month. It seemed to small, unusual for my home to now be as big on the inside as on the outside.

"Now, missus, I want to know everything that happened. Everything."

My mother sat down on the sofa and patted the spot next to her, her face set into a forced calm. I sat, robotically, feeling sick to my stomach. I recalled how she said 'everything', the implications behind her words perfectly clear.

"The police would want to know his name," she pushed, but that was the most difficult to answer, for the simple fact that he didn't really have one. He was simply, 'The Doctor'.

_If she remembers, she'll die._

His voice echoed with tragic ghostliness, and a tear sprung to my eye. "It…it wasn't anything like what you're thinking. I had all the choices in the world to make, including whether to stay or go. I've never been impulsive in my life, and its left me limited. But I was there, with a chance, and I took it. I have no regrets, and I trust that man with my life."

I let the words fly out before I could stop, stare at my mom's frightful expression and blush furiously. I'd systematically, as I thought in my private mind, confessed to having a crush on a man my mom knew years before me, travelled with, and didn't, or couldn't, remember. I was sad for her at first, but also glad. I didn't want to think how she felt for him…had she met him before she met my dad? Before she met her first husband?

When I did look at my mom, on the other hand, her eyes looked distantly away, just past me, pouting as though concentrating on a thought she couldn't quite grasp. She stayed that way for a few moments, and I grew nervous as I recalled the Doctor's words again.

"Mom, I'm fine, honestly. I just…think I need sleep. A lie down at least. Travelling can take it out of you."

She snapped back into reality, but somewhere in her eyes was still that thought. Could there be something there?

She nodded, and swallowed hard. "Yeah, you go on. I'll bring you something to eat."

I smiled in return, not really hungry, but it would take her mind off of things.

…

The Doctor waited in his TARDIS, alone. Once again, he faced the prospect of travelling with just himself.

He leaned back on the control panel, staring at a random spot on the floor, considering the situation. He still couldn't comprehend the chances of running into Donna again, much less that her daughter was Mia. Much less that she was his companion, just as brilliant…perhaps even more brilliant, than her mother, and he didn't realise. Not that they shared much in looks; other than the red hair, of course.

He scanned the TARDIS slowly. He listened to the sounds she made, the empty echoes it made as she tried to make the sounds last, just so he wouldn't feel as lonely. But the truth was that it made it worse. The sounds she made now, he was reminded of how Mia would comment on them, like the creaks of the door she complained about on her first day, but he was sure that she'd grown to think of them as familiar and homely, like a song welcoming her home. He was positive he'd sensed her mood ease earlier that day as they entered the box. He could even picture her stood next to the door, looking defiant and guilty at the same time over her reckless actions, her bright red hair covering only part of her face. He felt sick, because he'd only come to realise that his companions were made that way by his influence, made brave and stupid with the slightest hints of brilliance, just to stay with him. Madness. It was odd that a genius like himself could only realise that when his latest companion was gone. He felt sick, because of the implications. She didn't need to jump on the krillitane, but it got her in the room with him. But going passed the sickness and concern over her safety, he felt something else. Gratitude? Happiness? It was definitely, defiantly positive, and it felt strange for him. He gave a once over of the ship again, noticing how dark every corner seemed now without her.

…

I didn't really sleep, but the solitude was blissful enough. I spent the half an hour my mother had granted me before bringing me a snack considering my situation, noticing the silence, and how quiet it was without the Doctor's jabbers, and how much I missed it. I found I couldn't stay still, that once I sat in bed I stood again, before forcing myself to stay down. I then glanced around my normal, average room, how dull it seemed. How ordinary. This couldn't be my life now, not again. I'd done this. I'd seen aliens! Aliens, of all shapes. Id conversed with them, stood slightly behind the Doctor of course. I'd been on other planets, ones of such beauty that I was tricked into thinking that one could be my new home. Numerous suns, evenings watching them set to be replaced by larger moons, reflecting on odd coloured oceans to mimic earth the best it could. No matter how many times you saw the same phenomenon, you never got sick of that one. Not next to that man. He would describe exactly what caused the water to be that colour, why the planet needed that many suns, why the sand lit up beneath your fingers. So fluently that it was like a commentary, and soon you would understand if you followed the words, not just the tones of his voice, which I was often guilty of. No, knowing what I knew, seeing what I'd seen, I couldn't go back. There had to be a way. And there was only one.

She had to remember.

Just then, as if on cue, she appeared behind the bedroom door, a tray knocking against it. "Hungry?"

I stood, and took the tray from her hands. She looked weak, now I'd had chance to really see her. Her face was almost as pale as mine. "Thanks."

She sat in the wicker chair next to my bed, and I sat opposite her. I knew then that we needed to talk, both of us having something to say.

"So, what was your 'friend's' name?"

"Does it matter?"

"Yes, it does."

I glared hard at her. "So you can tell the police?"

She stared past me again, and then looked down to her lap. "For my own piece of mind."

I inhaled deeply, steadying myself, before I was going to launch myself into another rant. "Mom, you've known me for over 20 years, now. Have I ever done anything reckless? Have I ever given you reason to doubt my sanity, intelligence, or common sense, before this incident?"

She didn't answer, which usually meant no, but she didn't like to be wrong.

"Well then, believe me when I say that those things haven't essentially gone away. I was safe with him. He…saved me. While you were away, something…happened. A child was taken. I nearly was too, but he came and saved me, and we saved the child. Simon, his name is. From then, I guess he spent the whole time saving me."

I wasn't sure she was listening, for she had the same distant look in her eyes. I gave it some thought. I was instantly aware of the presence in my mind.

"I'll explain some more later, I'm still quite tired." She snapped back again and nodded, uncharacteristically quiet. Just before she exited, she turned her face on me. "I called the police, told them it was a mistake. You went away with a friend and forgot to tell me."

My eyes widened. "Why?"

She shrugged. "Impulse, I suppose." With that she was gone. I wished there and then that the Doctor had a phone, and that if he did, that I had his number.

Instead, I closed my eyes and thought about my plan. I'd never interacted with whatever was in my head before, not passed images anyway. I was hoping they could give me an answer.

_Hello?_

I waited, only for a second, until a voice replied.

_One is aware of your motives for communication, and one must reply 'yes'._

_Yes to what?_

_That one can help._

_Oh. Good! Thank you! How?_

The voice was more clear and compliant than I'd ever heard it before, and distinctly male. I wondered whether it had a name.

_We are not given names._

_Oh. _That was a bit creepy…and a little sad.

_We get by, miss. You would like to see the time lord again._

_Yes. _

_And you would risk your mother's safety for this._

I hesitated. Was that it in a nut shell? If so, that was despicable.

_Not exactly. I want her to remember, so that she doesn't look so lost. And so that she would understand what I have to tell her. So she could trust him, like I know she did once. I think he did too, he's tied to us, in some way. She feels to be a missing link, I suppose. He said she was once the most important woman in the world-_

_You do this because you love him. _

I felt myself go silent.

_One shall help you, as you have at last acknowledged us. _

_Sorry…how can you help?_

_We have our ways of protecting the mind, miss, our sub-race. Since our host still requires control so we can move, one must provide shields. A casing around the mind. One can place a shield around your mothers. She will remember, the damage will be prevented._

_Like…disarming a bomb?_

_In your mother's case, indeed that would be appropriate._

I thought over the words, evading the reveal of any distrust. I had to go into this with as much trust as possible.

_Thank you, I feel you ought to have a name._

The voice didn't reply, and I didn't wait.


	8. Chapter 8

When Donna entered the room again, her daughter was at last asleep, the tray on her bedside table untouched. She doubted it would help her, given what had happened. What had happened? That question had run round and round in her mind for weeks now, and now that it was almost answered, it only rose more questions. Who was that man? Why did she call the police and tell them it was all a misunderstanding?

Where had she seen him before?

She was sure she recognised him. The outfit was familiar, she was sure of it. She looked down and plucked the phone sticking out of her jeans pocket, the one she'd carried every hour of every day since Mia had gone missing. She scrolled down and found 'Mum'.

It rang for little more than a moment and it was picked up. "Donna? Anything?"

"Yes, she's home now. She's sleeping," she explained in hushed tones, closing the door on her way out. "Listen, I have something to ask."

"Me? Whatever could you ask me? Have the police been round yet?"

Donna breathed, unable to lie but unable to explain her unexplainable motives for why they hadn't. "I was just wondering, see, when she came home…a man was with her."

Her mother barely waited to breathe. "A man? A _man?! _Is she ok? Did he hurt her? Why that little-"

"Mom! Just breathe and shut up for a moment so I can talk! She told me it wasn't like that…and the man she was with…I recognised him."

"Perhaps you saw him round the shops or something, that's where they lie in wait for the prettiest little thing they can find-"

"Mom! It doesn't feel that…vague. I've seen him…I'm even sure ive spoken to him. I just thought maybe you could help, so I could eliminate the possibility of him being a family friend. Thought it might be helpful for when I call the police-"

"You haven't called them?! What on earth are you playing at girl! Just as bad as your grandfather, god rest him. Always saw everything as a little adventure-"

"MUM! Shut it and listen!"

"Don't you talk to your mother like that, now. Right, what does he look like?"

She thought back, but she didn't really need to. "Brown hair, kind of all over the place. Thin, too skinny for words, brown eyes," she listed, her mother silent for once. She waited.

"Donna, what was he wearing?" Her mother asked seriously. Donna barely thought it would be important, that he would have changed all the time. Then she remembered she recognised the trench coat.

"Brown suit, long trench coat."

She waited for what seemed like forever for a reply, and usually she savoured any quiet her mother aloud. But the silence made her uneasy.

"You know him don't you?"

"No, I don't. Look, Donna, sweetheart, I've got things to do…erm…tell Mia I'll call her later, ok?"

Just then, Donna lost her balance slightly, and the vision went fuzzy. It lasted for as long as it took her hand to lean upon the wall to steady her. "Ok mum, I'll tell her. Bye."

The line was dead. Donna shook the dizzy spell off, and decided that maybe she should get some sleep as well. It was needed, by the looks of her.

…

The phone rang next to my bedside, stirring me from my weak sleep. I instantly assumed it was the Doctor, one of his masterful genius tricks, making me snap the phone up to my ear. "Hello?"

"Mia, sweetheart, its your gran." Her voice was fast and forceful, and Mia didn't have chance to feel disappointed; concern took its place. "Gran! Have you spoken to mum? How are you? I'm so sorry about worrying everyone-"

"Don't worry about that Mia, just one thing I need to know. The man, the one you were with…does he have a name?"

I frowned. "Sorry?"

"That's a no, isn't it? Well, not a normal one. More like a title. Am I right?"

My heart jumped in my throat, stayed there, and stopped, lodged. "How do you know?"

I heard her heavy sigh through the ear piece. "Look, your mother must not remember him. Listen to me, please remember that. Ok?"

"Yes gran, I will, but…how do you know him?"

"Your mother travelled with him, before you were born. I'm not sure of the full story, but I remember the stars going out…and going outside…the sky…it was impossible. Planets that shouldn't be there, clear and humongous. The Doctor told us she'd saved the world, but she'd gained a mind of the time lords, too much for a human to survive with. He wiped her memory of everything that was him."

"But he didn't! She remembers…in the back of her mind there is something there. I know it. She told the police that it was a mistake, and that I was travelling with a friend. You know mum, she'd tear him a new one if she didn't trust him even a little bit."

She sighed pitifully. "That's impossible, she wouldn't survive that-"

"Gran, what if you're wrong? Can you honestly tell me that she's gone all these years, and that you've never seen that look on her face, as though trying hard to remember?"

"You think that's the same as him walking up to her and showing her a picture of her next to that space ship thing on a planet with a pink sky? Just as long as those inklings stay that way, just as that, shes safe. The Doctor was explicit about that."

"I know! He said! But he can be wrong-"

"Mia, please, stop chasing the idea. I know why you're doing it, and I understand; he's incredible, and dazzling. But think of your mother."

"I am."

"Then do the right thing. Consider her, and what might happen, please?"

A tear formed in my eye, and I was suddenly doubtful that my plan would work. "I'll try my best."

I slowly lowered the phone and pushed the red button without looking. I felt too sick to look anywhere but ahead, trying to be ok with the prospect of normality again. When I found I couldn't, I closed my eyes, and projected my mind inwards.

_Hello?_

I waited, but no answer came. Just what I wanted.

I left my room, and found my mother asleep on her bed. I didn't want to disturb her, so I waited downstairs, trying to find anything to occupy my mind. I switched the TV on and stared aimlessly at the screen for 30 minutes, until I heard the creaking of footsteps. I turned to find her padding down the carpeted stairs. Mimicking her movements from earlier, I scooted over on the sofa and she sat down.

"Looks like I could sleep as well as you could. Never could sleep in the day."

I gave a short laugh, and sniffed. If my plan didn't work, and I'd placed my trust in something not worthy of trust, she would die. I would be killing my mum, and I'd never be forgiven. Not by my dad, my gran, the Doctor, anyone, including myself. Then I thought, would I rather die knowing all that I'd done, that I'd saved the world, nay, many? Or would I be happy to die of old age still wondering what that nagging thought was niggling away, somewhere unknown in my own mind?


	9. Chapter 9

"Mom, did you recognise that man?"

She caught my eyes instantly, looking somewhat lost. That was a yes, but not who he was.

"Are you going to tell me who he is now?"

"Just tell me if you trust me. Honestly."

"Mia," she said, laughing but with impatience, "please."

I needed more proof, more that she knew at least something.

"Why did you call the police and tell them what you did?"

She held my eyes for a long moment, but looked away suddenly. She began to look down at her fingers like I did when I was nervous, and she didn't look up while she spoke. Instead, she looked over the floor. "I don't really know…I guess I knew he didn't mean you harm. He brought you home. That wouldn't have happened if it was as…seedy…as what you can hear on the news."

I processed the words, perhaps looking into them for more than they said. Then I remembered the conversation with Gran.

"Mia, just tell me who he is, because I'm going mad just to place him here," she said, finally looking up and flicking her fringe from her eyes. "I know him, yes! But its like I know him but simply cannot place him anywhere! Not in a shop, not in the house, not even in the street. Hes not a neighbour, and your Gran says he's not a family friend-"

"You believe that?"

She gave me a long look, sighed, and rose slowly. "Come on, I fancy a walk."

I followed suit, and followed to the door, agreeing, not only for the opportunity to talk, but I really needed to stretch my legs. I was filled with energy now, almost as much as the Doctor on his happy moments, and I knew why. I was getting somewhere. I was proving Gran wrong.

I went to open the door as she pulled her coat on, and recoiled in shock.

The Doctor looked glumly across at me, my eyes almost level with his. I heard my mum inhale sharply behind me, and push me out of the way. Then she landed a slap across his face before he could even blink.

"OI! What did I do now?!"

"Oh don't you go there with me, sunshine! Don't you dare! You just can't help yourself can you?!"

I watched in horror and embaressment and disappointment as they glared at eachother, the Doctor like an injured lion rubbing his cheek, my mother seeming to tower over him in her anger.

"Mrs Noble, I mean, Morton, you seem to be under-"

"Noble? How the hell do you know my name?"

He gave her a loud look, as though to say, 'are you stupid?' I think he was just still shocked and angry.

"Mum, this is the…" I gave the Doctor a look, his eyes impossibly wide, to check how he'd react. This is the Doctor."

"Eh?"

Disappointment lay as a shallow layer in my stomach, but I was suddenly aware then of how happy I was that he'd come back for me. My heart was racing. I daren't even look at him yet, though. One of my potentially and, as unexplained, reckless acts.

"You know him, and not just from the shops, the street, not even just through the family."

"Mia, stop!"

I shot him a sharp look, and felt the full force of the fear in his eyes. I resisted to crumble.

"Mum, look at him," I requested, because she was looking past him, distantly thinking. I saw her eyes focus minutely. She shook her head and was gone again.

"No, no, I can't."

"Mia, whatever you think you're achieving, don't. She'll die if she-"

"Remembers you."

I stared hard at her suddenly, and so did he. The words were her own, and her lips began shaking. Then, with no warning, not even closing her eyes, she collapsed.

"DONNA!"

"Mum!" Oh god, what had I done?!

I flew down to a crouch and felt her pulse in her neck, and breathed a sigh of great relief when it pulsed securely beneath my fingers. "She's ok," I breathed. I ignored his eyes as I took her hands to take her inside, but he closed the door and snatched my hand away from her left one. He turned out to be a lot stronger than I was. Soon she was out on the sofa, and we stood over her, silently considering what to do next.

…

The dream was odd. Not just odd, but strange. Alien to her, and yet very, very familiar. Faces drifted past of all shapes, colours, sizes and protrusions. She didn't know the names of what they were, but she knew them, whatever they turned out to be. Not just her dream self, either, because she was simply viewing a screen, not moving but following, completely still, looking through the eyes of the person who'd experienced all that. Old earth, new earth, distant planets, aliens even more distant, racing past her eyes with a rush, as though all of the memories needed to cram themselves in, or there were so many of them that no time in the world could be enough at a normal pace. Finally, after bald aliens with large heads and small faces, bald aliens with tentacles covering their mouths, dome shaped robots…they slowed. Almost at a sudden stop. A song emerged, one that had always been there, simply fallen to the loudness of everything else. A voice, souring so high, so beautiful, so tragic. A face emerged, narrow and sharp and handsome, brown eyes eying her, power held in them. The most alien of them all.

…

Finally, she sighed, and I breathed with a breath that I had been keeping for endless seconds. The Doctor was standing over her with me, and he hadn't moved or spoken once.

"Doctor," she whispered.

My pulse stopped, and I risked a look up at him. His nostrils wide with sharp, supressed hyperventilation, his eyes frozen with determination not to hope. I wasn't willing to be so hopeless, but I remained where I was, next to him. This was my place now.

"What…the song…I thought I asked you to stop it."

The breathing beside me quickened, and his hand twitched to touch mine. I felt my lips twitch into a smile.

"Please, make it stop."

"Ok, ok, Donna. I'm here."

He stepped forward and crouched in one fluid motion, resting his hands on each side of her head. She relaxed in moments.

"Better?" He whispered, still cautious. She nodded, and finally opened her eyes. Her eyes were clear, clearer than I'd ever seen them. But before I knew, she landed another sharp slap around his face, and he lost his balance. He was sitting at my feet, holding his face again. "What now?!"

"For leaving me, that's why, space man! You left me, back there, with nothing more than a good bye, my dear old granddad crying and at a loss for words! What the hell did you do?!"

The Doctor couldn't answer, and I couldn't speak. I simply watched the exchange.

"Donna, that's…how this…how is are you doing this?!"

Both looked up at me, and finally the Doctor rose to meet my eyes. "What did you do?"

I looked into his eyes, nervousness pulling them wide and tight. "I found a way, the thing that's in my head. It's gone, anyway."

He grabbed my shoulders, and his flaming eyes threw panic into my own. "What does that mean, Mia?" he asked quietly, deadly quiet concern in his voice. "What did it tell you?"

"It told me it could help. It's been in my head for weeks now, and I know it's been showing me as much as it's been learning from me. He told me that in return for responding, he would help."

"And you thought that would be clever?! Don't you know what they're nickname is throughout the galaxy, in hundreds of different languages?! Silent assassins."

"I wasn't killed, Doctor. As I reminded you, it's been in my head, and I'm still alive, no worse off than before. Why was that?"

I was feeling almost completely calm, because my argument was piecing together as though it existed that way all along. The only thing getting in the way was the worry in those dark brown eyes, a storm hindering the starlight.

"It was my mother's time lord part, the part that would kill her because no human can possess that knowledge. That's why you had to wipe that part away from her knowledge…but what if it could come back, and be used? What if she was free of it, free of not knowing what that nagging memory is? What if that part of her could be used for something else?"

The Doctor's grip loosened, but his eyes remained as strong and defiant. "You did it…so she could remember?"

I nodded, as though it were obvious. "It wasn't for selfish reasons…it may have started out that way, or maybe I only thought that. But no one deserves to have done so much, achieved so much, and not be able to know. No one should be deprived of the memories they've had… with you."

His eyes widened marginally, and he dropped his hands. His features softened, and I was only acutely aware of my mother being in the room. When we looked back to her, after she made a very audible cough, she was sitting, an outwardly suspicious look in her eye. "And just what is that all about? You haven't gotten her into trouble have you?" Her voice was dangerous, and the Doctor began to mumble small sounds. His mouth was opening and closing like a guppy fish.

"Donna, I know it's a lot to ask…But you're going to have to trust me. You can still do that, can't you?"

He was crouching before her again. Her eyes grew concerned. "Always. I'm still remembering, but I know that much…but when it comes to her…"

"Donna, Donna Noble. There is nothing I want more in the universe than to keep her safe. For that reason, you need to trust me."

She stared for a while, until her eyes began to water. Then she slowly nodded.

"You know, that daughter of yours. If she's thinking what I think she'd thinking, she's brilliant," He remarked with a huge grin, and my heart leaped. That truly was something! I only hoped he knew what I was thinking.

…

"So, what exactly is your plan?"

We'd explained, as a joint effort, the whole story, regarding the trouble we'd had with the entity in my mind, and what the race was in a nut shell, since she'd not encountered them in her time with the Doctor. She hadn't gained all the details yet, but at least she knew the Doctor, who he was to her, and what she'd achieved. Well, some of it. It was a haze, she'd reported, since her mind was somewhat fused to another that she could never access.

I had to remind the Doctor that she hadn't been subjected to one of his tangents for many years, and so he'd have to take it slow with the science, and after all, she was still consuming it all.

"Basically, the energy has created a shell," he said, using his hands to form a casing around the air, apparently the time lord part. "And while you're remembering this, it's protecting the rest of your mind, like a shield."

"Just like defusing a bomb, he said," I added. The Doctor turned to me and gave me an exasperated look. "'He'- Who's 'he'?"

I shrugged from the chair across from him and my mother, watching him take my advice on simplification to a whole new level while talking to my mother. "It's a male…thing."

"How do you know that?"

"I just get the sense he's male."

He stared at me for a while. "I bet you've named him as well."

I laughed, and felt quietly pleased at the slight childish jealous tone in his voice. "No, he's not a cockroach."

"He's as good as one. I mean it," he added, when I smiled in victory at him. "Anyway, why are you personifying it?"

"I don't know, pity I guess…I was thinking of naming him…James." I resisted a quiet smirk at his face.

"Why 'James'? 'James' the weeping angel, yeah! Nice fit!"

"Well, you look human but you're not, and you title yourself with a human professional title, so why not? I've even seen you go under the alias of 'John' before, so if you can have a name, why can't James? He's sentient, like you and me and Mom, so he deserves one."

"Because he, I mean IT is not…I mean…that's not even the point! It's distracting us from the task in hand."

"You started it."

"And I'm ending it!" Donna piped up in the background, and we shut up at once. The Doctor was looking quite beaten and guilty, although he'd never admit that he'd just been put in his place by a mother and daughter.

Silence drew on, and I felt a need to defend my reasoning for naming the being. Beyond teasing, of course.

"You want to know why, then?"

My voice was so loud in the silence, the silence following it was electric. I continued however, when the Doctor connected his eyes with mine.

"Because I've seen what he's seen. He's seen what no being should see. He's seen his own people killed, his home destroyed, burning skies and trees ablaze, and he could do nothing but watch. Sound familiar?"

Mom watched his emotions as I spoke, and the way she looked at him told me she knew. She knew his past as much as I did, maybe more. Maybe she'd seen it, too."

"I gave him a name because I wanted to. He's about to help us, help Mom remember, help you with your guilt, and me with travel with you again. And, with that part of her mind, they finally have the imagination and creativity they craved from me, on a much more powerful level. On an everlasting, immortal level. Isn't that enough to trust him?"

"Doctor," Donna added slowly, placing a hand on the pair clamped together, leaning on his knees. "Listen to her. Remember what you said about her."

I felt gratitude well up in my eyes at the faith she put in me. She trusted us, despite having near enough to no clue of what was going on in her mind.

He watched her beneath his eye lashes, a heavily dark stare that showed that he was thinking, but he was resolved. While he didn't particularly like it, he had no other choice. That was what that expression told us.

"Alright."

He stretched out his long legs and stood, and I noticed that his hair almost scraped the ceiling. "A nice trip down memory lane, just what we needed."

While there was a hint of sarcasm in his voice, I allowed myself to notice that he stood taller than when we first arrived, and his voice wasn't so dark. I joined, and my mother followed.

"So what's the plan then?" Donna asked, flattening down her clothes. I noticed the change in her, too. I watched the pair exchange familiar glances as old friends. Well, old for her; it had only been a couple of months for him.

He rocked on his heels as he thought, perhaps rolling the die as to whether he should continue taking chances. Wordlessly he turned, grabbed his discarded trench coat from the arm of the sofa and cocked his head. "Come on."

He lead us outside into the blinding sun, and so threw his coat back into the house. "Shan't be needing that! Snow! Where's the snow? I love the snow!"

I laughed as I remembered how we met, him lost in the snow. "You seem in higher spirits, Doctor."

"I'd be in even higher spirits if we had snow."

"Typical, no weather's good enough for you," Donna remarked sardonically. We continued walking on in a light-hearted haze all the way into the nearby village, usually sleepy but now teaming with sun bathers.

"I must be honest, I never imagined Donna Noble settling down in the country," the Doctor said as he slowed his step, and I thought that maybe he was delaying the journey in case the worst happened. I fell into step with them both.

She shrugged at his remark and adopted a thoughtful expression. "I think that, subconsciously, I always thought that London was dangerous, and when I found out about Mia, I just took the chance and went."

"What happened?"

She looked up at him, and whatever façade she was holding up crumbled. She didn't cry, she always had a strong hold over emotions she thought would make her appear weak.

"Shaun died, car accident, then…"

We came to a stop, and the three of us stood in the patch of grass, Mom and I facing the Doctor. Sadness dawned on my mom's face, and I took her hand gently.

"Gramp's passed away," she breathed quietly, flicking her hair from her face to reveal her lack of tears. "Peaceful, you know. I'm sorry, I know you were…"

I looked to the Doctor, his face empty. His eyes full of remorse. "Donna, I'm…"

"I know," she laughed awkwardly, "So, so sorry. Just wish this one new him. Anyway, when that happened, I came here for a break, met Steve, her dad, and so on and so forth."

We hesitated for a while, staying awkwardly to the floor in the end, and automatically began walking in silence. I pondered the Doctor's reaction.

I'd heard so much about my great gramps, from my gran and mom, but could never really picture him. Wilfred, a slightly eccentric old man who dreamed of the stars and loved the idea of an adventure, but never really got there. So he grew as a time bomb of dreams, unfulfilled but never lost, never given up on. I wondered if he knew…But of course he did! My Gran mentioned his place in keeping my mother safe and unknowing, and he'd obviously known the Doctor. That made me feel comforted, and slightly sad. Sad that the Doctor, the most alien man on the planet, had known him when I didn't. That he'd known what his own grand-daughter had done, and was never able to express his pride.

My thoughts were interrupted by the Doctor's voice.

"Right, here we are then."

We were standing in a church yard, the odd ancient headstone dotted here and there. A large tree gave cover to the sunlight, and beneath it stood the blue box. My mother, who'd fallen behind slightly, came around the tree trunk as we watched, nervous, excited, expectant and unprepared at the same time. When she finally found it with her eyes, tears welled up, and an unexplainable emotion passed over her face.

"Well? Can I trust you to remember-"

"Yes! Yes I know," she rushed, holding her fingers before her to shut him up, which he did abruptly. "Time…and…Relative! Dimension in…Space! Is that it?"

The Doctor stood silent for a long moment, and then, finally, for the first time since we'd left the house, looked me in the eye. A huge grin grew over his skinny face. "You'd better thank that James next time you see him," he beamed, and took me up in his arms. He was laughing, and soon I was too, and after an unknown number of seconds he placed me down and went to hug my mom. I'd honestly never been more relieved, or seen her so happy.


	10. Chapter 10

Once inside, I didn't even expect the shock of the 'inside bigger than the outside', but I enjoyed the reaction she gave of the box that was her home for a time. I watched as she wondered round, soaking in every detail of the TARDIS and all that it was, all its mundane surrealism, its eccentricity, its alien homeliness. The Doctor was still beaming, but he stayed by cautiously, were something to go wrong. While he may have begun to trust James, glitches may still happen.

Just then, as she wondered her hands over the control panel, she winced, and her hand flew to her head. "Donna? What's wrong?"

"Nothing…just…just a flash."

The Doctor was already moving. "Right! James! If you're listening, do your magic! Do whatever you've gotta do!"

He lay her down on the floor, and sat just above her head. "Now Donna, I'm just going to place my hands either side again. Do you still trust me?"

She nodded heavily, and closed her eyes, squinting.

"Now, you're brain has recognised the control panel; one of the last things you did with me was drive the TARDIS, and that's created a spike that part of your mind that the shield can't supress forever. James? I'm going to have to ask something of you. Mia?"

I was already sitting on the floor, holding my mothers hand. She squeezed it tightly. "Yes?"

"Hold on tight. I'm going to ask him to take the shield down."

I froze, and my eyes stretched wide with shock. "What?! No! You said-"

"Yes, I know, but in order to make sure she is sufficiently safe from that part I need to gather all of it, including every memory from that period of time."

I stared at him blankly, so he gave me a long look. "Think of it like, opening the net, risking all the other fish getting out to get more in."

I thought it over, knowing I had nothing to think over, because he would always know what to do, even if it was extraordinarily idiotic. I nodded. "Good analogy."

"Thanks!" He beamed, and looked back down. "Now James, open that net!"

The next moment was the most frightening of my life. My hand was being crushed, and Mom was squirming like a worm in bleach. Hers opened slightly, to show a bright, golden glow. A high, twinkling _wurring _sound was all that could be heard, and it was deafening.

Then I noticed that the glow wasn't only in her eyes. It was around her head, flowing into the hands either side of it, soaking it in like water. I could only stare as the beautiful glow flowed in a stream like motion, wondering if that's how the Angels looked in true form.

The noise died down slowly, and Donna began to relax. The glow was dying down in brightness, until it could be seen at all. I checked his face for confirmation, and watched as the orange glow regressed back into brown. He was struggling for breath as though he'd been running.

"Mom?"

She lay still for a moment, the only movement being her chest rising and falling, much more rhythmic than the Doctor, who'd fallen back to catch his breath. She blinked finally, and pushed herself to sitting. "I'm fine," she sighed, and I gave her a quick hug before going to the Doctor.

"You alright?" I said gently, and he glanced at me with a relief in his eyes. He smiled, and I threw my arms around him before I could comprehend what I was doing.

"Thank you," I whispered in his ear.

…

"So, where are you off to now then?" Donna asked. The Doctor shrugged, avoiding my eyes. "I'm not quite sure, to be honest with you. I thought that maybe…you might want to…" He flicked his head to motion to the TARDIS. I looked to my mother with a smile. "Come on, it might be fun?"

Her smile was genuine, gracious, but weak. She shook her head gently. "No, Steve's back at 7, don't want him to think I've run off."

He nodded in understanding, and I looked back at the Doctor. "You still want me to come with?" I asked nervously. He gave me a look of utter shock. "Why not?!"

I shrugged, and went back to my mom. "Are you ok with that?"

She turned slightly so she was facing me fully, and hugged me tightly. "Mia," she said, pulling away and taking my hands in her own. "Its dangerous out there. Extremely dangerous. But I know that Space Man over there has told you that, in every attempt to make you stay and let you go. You're smart, and even he says you're brilliant, so who am I to stop you."

I gave her a long look, and smiled, before stepping back. I found my way over the short distance to the Doctor. "What will you tell Dad?"

"Everything, I suppose. If he's too much of an idiot to believe me, I'll signal to have the TARDIS land in the lounge. I'll tell him you'll…be back for tea," she finished, motioning to the time machine behind. I nodded and grinned. "See you for tea then."

…

Donna watched as her grinning daughter disappeared into the TARDIS, waving as the man in the trench coat waved behind, that knowing, shy smile on his face she recognised from the countless time she'd witnessed him do the impossible. She knew she'd never fully regain her memory, but she knew him, and knew enough to know that she'd be ok. For now, at least. An easy, relaxed smile came to her lips as the creaking signalled the door closing; she wasn't watching, because she knew that deep down inside, part of her wished she'd taken up that offer. Watching her daughter, her flaming hair as bright as her own once was, might bring back too many memories.

The pulsing, straining sound of the blue box dematerializing signalled it's departure, and with it, a pressure she barely noticed lifted from her head, like a quiet migraine in the distance. She checked her memories again to make sure, and smiled at the peace she felt with the pair. Pulling her brown shrug around her close as the wind blew through her hair, she walked away from the area the blue box once occupied.

…

As soon as they entered the TARDIS, he made straight for the control panel, pulled the necessary levers, pushed a few buttons, his hands flying through them with little thought. He knew the TARDIS would take him wherever he was needed, so he didn't set a course. He couldn't think that straight right now.

He turned round after noticing that Mia had remained silent, to find her stood at the doors again, her coat folded over her arms and pulled to her chest. She watched him with careful intrigue, and her turned fully to lean back on the panel. He had that feeling of déjà vu. He wasn't sure what he was feeling, or he was waiting for, but he folded his arms anyway.

Finally she took a breath and asked, "How are you feeling?"

"What you did was reckless," was his instant retort. But he felt no disappointment in any way, shape or form. Was he used to it from her? Or was he used to it from himself? To be so sure that a plan would work of that nature was rarely familiar with him, so was it her?

She didn't move, keeping a cautious distance. "That doesn't answer the question. I already know that."

What did he feel? He was unsure, unsure as to how much she wanted, unsure how many emotions he should give in his answer. If he were to be honest, he probably felt so many emotions she would probably not understand why.

But no, she was intelligent. Brilliant, in fact, and very, very human. Most of the emotions he felt he'd been able to identify through human definitions, through development of understanding how humans worked, through experience. Could a 20 year old girl truly understand the functions of the mind of a 900 year old time lord?

He suddenly heard a voice, his own again, but a sneaky whisper, not quite a discernable voice either. More like a thought, tugging, gentle as a child at his coat, urging for his attention.

What did he want to say?

"Mia, I-"

The room fell sharply to the right before he could catch up, but Mia flew to the ground with it. Even in the deafening rattle of the ship's chaotic surge through god only knew where, he heard the metallic clash between the rail and her head.

"MIA!"

He held on to the chair before he realised what it was, and began pulling his way to the rail as hard as he could, fighting the tugs and pulls and plummets they were undergoing, making his way to her unconscious, unmoving body.


End file.
